Sauté’ the onions in olive oil for 6 minutes, stirring
often.Add garlic and parsley.Now add red wine, puree, water, brown sugar
and seasonings.Simmer on low for at least
an hour.The longer it simmers the
better!You may also add more seasonings
to taste.

Mix all together except for broth, form meatballs and place
on large greased jelly-roll pan.Pour
broth all around the meatballs.Bake at
450 for 20 minutes, turning once during cooking.Add meatballs and all drippings to your sauce
and simmer for at least one hour.

CHOPPED CAPRESE SALAD

2 cups romaine lettuce, chopped

2 fresh tomatoes, chopped

1 cup fresh mozzarella, cubed

1 to 2 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped

Balsamic vinegar or balsamic glaze

Fresh Parmesan cheese

Place chopped lettuce onto a platter, top with tomatoes, mozzarella
cheese, basil and Parmesan cheese.Drizzle with balsamic vinegar or glaze and serve immediately.

MEATBALL AND PEPPERONI PIZZA

1 pre-made pizza crust or pizza dough (I like the dough from
Publix)

Large pepperoni, sliced thin

1 ½ cup spaghetti sauce

10-12 meatballs, sliced thin

1 lb. shredded mozzarella cheese

Spread the sauce on the pizza, place pepperoni and sliced
meatballs over the sauce.Sprinkle with
cheese and bake for 12-15 minutes at 425.

EASY TIRAMISU

½ cup sugar

1/3 cup water

2/3 cup strong coffee

2 (8-ounce) cartons mascarpone cheese, softened

1/3 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

1-½ cups whipping cream

3 (3-ounce) packages ladyfingers

1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder

Fresh raspberries to garnish

In a small pan, combine ½ cup sugar and water.Bring this to a boil until sugar
dissolves.Remove from heat and stir in
coffee.For the filling, stir together
mascarpone cheese, 1/3-cup sugar and vanilla.In a chilled bowl, beat whipping cream and 2 tablespoons sugar until
soft peaks form.This takes about 5 to 7
minutes.Now add this mixture to the
cheese mixture.To assemble, arrange
half of the ladyfingers in an 8x8 or 2-quart glass dish.Brush with syrup mixture and spread with half
the filling.Repeat again for a second
layer.Cover and chill for at least 4
hours before serving and garnish with raspberries, if desired.

In a large pot, brown the onion in the butter and olive oil
for about 6 minutes.Add all remaining
ingredients except the cheese and simmer on low for 1 hour.Just before serving, stir in Pepper jack
cheese until melted.Place in a bowl,
and top the chowder with additional cheese, sour cream, avocado and tortilla
chips, if desired.

Brown beef with the onion and
bell pepper.Drain the beef and place
back into a large pot.Stir in the flour
until mixed well and add all of the remaining ingredients.Simmer at least an hour, but the longer it
simmers on very low, the better it is!You may want to taste it as you cook it to see if you desire more of any
of the seasonings.I serve my chili with
grated sharp cheddar, jalapenos and sour cream J

JALAPENO-CHEDDAR CORN MUFFINS

1 (6-ounce) package Mexican or regular
cornbread mix (the kind you just add milk or water to)

1 fresh jalapeno seeded and
chopped or a small can jalapeno

1 (7-ounce) can Mexicorn

1 cup sharp cheddar cheese

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

2 tablespoons sugar

Add the amount of milk it
states on the back of the package and then add the remaining ingredients well
and spoon into a well-greased 24-count mini muffin tin.Bake at 375 for 15 minutes or until browned.

SPOOKY SPIDER DEVILED EGGS

12 eggs, boiled and peeled

3 tablespoons mayo

2 tablespoons sour cream

1 teaspoon yellow mustard

1 tablespoon vinegar

1 tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon onion powder

¼ cups Wickles Pickles, chopped

salt and pepper to taste

Dash of hot sauce, optional

Whole-pitted black olives

Cut eggs in half and carefully
slip out the yolks into a medium bowl.Add the remaining ingredients, except the olives, and stir well.Scoop a teaspoon of yolk mixture into each
egg white.Slice black olives in half
and place one on top of each egg for the body of the spider.Slice the olives to make 8 thin slices for
each egg—4 legs on each side—and place them around the body to create the look
of a spider.Wickles Pickles are a sweet
and spicy pickle, but if you can’t find them, any of your favorite pickles will
do JTip for boiling eggs:Place eggs in a large pot of water.Bring to a boil.As soon as the water comes to a boil, add 1
tablespoon of vinegar, turn off the stove and cover the pot with a
tight-fitting lid.Let them sit for 13
minutes then rinse with cold water.This
is a trick my mom-in-law taught me, and they are always very easy to peel and
never overcooked.

GHOST COOKIES

24 NUTTER BUTTER cookies

1 package of white almond bark
(you can find this on the baking aisle)

mini semisweet chocolate chips

Line a large cookie sheet with
wax paper.Melt the almond bark in the
microwave according to the package directions.Dip each cookie into the almond bark and place onto the wax paper.Press 2 chocolate chips onto each cookie for
the eyes.Place in the fridge until the
almond bark sets.

HALLOWEEN SNACK MIX

3 cups Honey-Nut Cheerios

2 cups chow mein noodles

1 cup honey-roasted peanuts

½ cup raisins

½ cup orange and black
M&M’s

½ cup candy corn

½ cup each of peanut butter
chips and white chocolate chips

Mix in a large bowl and store
in a large airtight container.This will
keep for several weeks and kids will love it!

Season pork chops generously on both sides with
seasonings.Sear both sides for 1 minute
in a skillet.Mix first 3 ingredients
together.Place the pork chops in a
baking dish, then place sliced onions over pork chops and pour cola mixture
over them.Bake at 350 for 45 minutes to
1 hour.Let them rest 5 or 10 minutes
before serving.

SAVORY GREEN BEANS

1 tablespoon olive oil & 2 tablespoon butter

1 lb. frozen Italian-cut green beans

1 package country ham, chopped

1 onion, sliced

salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder

Saute’ ham in the olive oil and butter for about 10 minutes
or until browned.I like to remove at
least half the ham and discard it.Add
the onions and sauté 5 minutes. Add the
green beans and pour enough water in the pot just to cover them.Add seasonings and bring to a boil.Once it’s boiling, turn on low and simmer for
1 hour.

SUPER CORN CASSEROLE

1 can cream-style corn

1 can whole-kernel corn, drained

1 stick butter, melted

1 cup sour cream

1 6-ounce package Jiffy corn bread mix

Combine all ingredients and mix well.Pour into a greased 13x9x2 pan, and bake at
350 for 1 hour.

DUTCH APPLE PIE

Crust & Topping:

2 cups flour

½ cup oatmeal (I use quick-cooking oats)

1 cup brown sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 stick plus 4 tablespoons real butter, melted

For the filling:

2/3 cup sugar

3 tablespoons cornstarch

1 ¼ cups water

3 cups of apples, sliced and peeled (I use Granny Smith)

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon vanilla

Combine the first 5 ingredients, mixing well.Set aside 1 cup (this will be for the
topping).Press the rest of the mixture
into a 9-inch pie plate.For the
filling, place the water and cornstarch into a small saucepan and stir until
the cornstarch has dissolved.Add the
sugar and place the saucepan on the stove and bring to a boil.Cook for 1 to 2 minutes or just until mixture
begins to thicken.Remove from heat and
stir in the apples, cinnamon and vanilla.Pour this mixture into the crust and top it with the 1 cup of the
reserved crust/topping mixture.Bake at
350 for 40 to 50 minutes or until golden brown.Let it cool for about 20 minutes before serving.Add a dollop of vanilla ice cream before
serving, if desired JEnjoy!

About Me

My name is Melissa, and my favorite thing to do is cook and experiment with new recipes...it's therapy for me :) I'm not a fancy cook...if I want fancy, I go to a 5-star restaurant :) My recipes are simple, I use every-day-easy ingredients and they tastes delicious! Family dinners are so important to me, and some of our best times and talks have been around the dinner table with my husband and 2 children. My purpose for this blog is to encourage and inspire you to have more time around your dinner table with your own family, while they enjoy and rave over the home-cooked meal you prepared for them! I have a cooking show called Dream Home Cooking which airs in North Alabama every Sunday morning on WAAY 31 at 9:30a.m. I also write a weekly food column for the Madison Record.